PLEASE NOTE: This article was written before I was convinced, from the Bible, of the complete invalidity of the SOP as a doctrine of faith. (Ample evidence for this can be found in this site’s LIBRARY http://www.a4t.org/Library/) Consequently, any comments in this article by me of faith in the Ellen White’s SOP should be viewed with much more than a pinch of salt! At the same time, it should be amply clear that her (EGW) followers fully elevate her above Holy Scripture, THIS is epecially true of Historic or Independent SDAs. AS IT IS NOW, i fear more for their eternal salvation than I do about traditional SDAs. I can only pray that you are cognizant of Christ’s warnings about NOTbeing deceived and how easy it is to be deceived without knowing it...Theses letters to me should make this perfectly clear. though I doubt that many will believe this!

Dear Friends,

The following set of e-mails will help to illustrate the position that many find themselves in today in regards to the Spirit of Prophecy and where it should stand as we study scripture.

It will undeniably show that we are to put the Word of God, the Bible, as the rule by which we live and the beliefs we hold. It is not my purpose to put the Writings down, but rather to elevate Scripture and show where the Spirit of Prophecy belongs in comparison.

This is not of anyone's design, but God's. The facts that are presented in these e-mails and articles cannot be refuted. You can try, but if you are honest, you will concede that this is the way God meant it to be, for our edification. We can accept it our reject it, it's your choice, but the evidences presented here are as basic and solid as our beliefs that Christ is coming soon and that the Sabbath will be the final test. The fact that the Spirit of Prophecy does not seem to agree with these findings may cause great concern and clamors of heresy in our midst, but before taking that giant leap, read some of the evidence in the articles and allow your curiosity to wander. You will discover why there is an apparent discrepancy between the Spirit of Prophecy and Scripture. It is NOT an apparent discrepancy, they outright do not agree on several points! But, there is a reason for this and Ellen White readily admits it....unknowingly! If it is any consolation, you will also find that the Spirit of Prophecy is used on several occasions to emphasize a point, but the goal of these articles are to prove the sequence of events from the Scriptures and Scripture alone.

These are a few of the irrefutable, empirical facts that traditionalist skillfully avoid mentioning:

1. Why does the traditional view ignore Christ's role as the antitype in the sacrificial services, such as the selection of the lamb on the 10th day of Nisan, being slain on the 14th day and eaten on Passover, if Passover is always on the 15th?

2. Why does the traditional view have Christ's Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, I(f one follows their logic, it should be called Palm MONDAY) if John 12:1 says Christ entered Bethany six days before Passover, assuming Passover is on Saturday. In view of this, why does Ellen White state that Christ entered Bethany on Friday to spend the Sabbath hours with Lazarus and his sisters?

3. Why does the traditional view have Christ in the tomb for approximately 36 hours when Christ Himself, tells us in Matthew 12:40 - "For as Jonas was three days AND three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days AND three nights in the heart of the earth." Why is it necessary for Inclusive Reckoning to be used to explain their reasoning and yet it doesn't help to answer the first two empirical(s) above? [emphasis mine] AND Why does Matthew 27:62,63 say that the Chief Priests and Pharisees went to Pilate the day AFTER the Preparation day to ask Pilate for armed guards to prevent Jesus from rising or being stolen by His friends. They specifically told Pilate: "Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again." ... and He had already been dead presumably for approximately 18 hours? Let's look at Mark 16:1 and Luke 23:55,56, conclusively show s that there were TWO Preparation Days AND thus TWO Sabbaths during Christ's death.

4. Why is there is so much controversy regarding the three days and three nights period? Does the Bible really mean "ON the third day" of "AFTER the third day"? Or does "in the heart of the earth" mean that His death began with His trial?? Absurd!

5. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that Christ was resurrected on Sunday morning at dawn or at any time during the daylight hours. All that Scripture says is WHEN the women cam to the tomb to anoint the body of Christ. He WAS already a risen Saviour by then!

6. Why does Ellen White appear to follow the traditional view if the Bible says otherwise?

There are literally dozens of other critical facts that are overlooked by the traditional view that Christ was crucified on Friday and resurrected on Sunday morning. (Please read Matthew 24 if you have forgotten what Christ says about being deceived). These and many other questions are scripturally answered in these articles. You will wonder why the scholars have been so remiss or should I use the word, ignorant?

Brothers and Sisters, is this just a Side Issue? If you really believe so, then you have a choice to make. I only wish the answer to this was as simple as the question. For most the choice is easy... Don''t rock the boat and don''t be accused of ''making the testimonies of none effect''.

This is not of my design nor of the articles writer's design. This is the way God designed it to be and I am frankly too ignorant to know why it is this way, except that it has made those that take the time to study this, better Bible students. As important as the Spirit of Prophecy is, it is NOT Scripture, nor will it ever replace it, and I think this was God's intent from the beginning.

If this is going to shake your faith in any way, then I must tell you that you never had a faith that Christ could rely on from the start.

I am literally amazed at the number of supposedly intelligent people that put the Writings equal to or above the Bible. No matter how often they are shown her admonitions that her Writings are to be the 'Lesser Light' which points to the 'Greater Light', they are memorized by the Writings and go as far as making Scripture adhere to the Writings by their skewed interpretations of Scripture.

I am going to qualify my statements by saying that at least in the area of Christ's last days on this earth before His crucifixion, this is the Truth, not maybe the truth...but IS the truth. I invite ANYONE to prove these findings false from Scripture. This website is called Adventist4Truth for a reason.

"But God will have a people upon the earth to maintain the Bible, and the Bible only, as the standard of all doctrines and the basis of all reforms. The opinions of learned men, the deductions of science, the creeds or decisions of ecclesiastical councils, as numerous and discordant as are the churches which they represent, the voice of the majority--not one nor all of these should be regarded as evidence for or against any point of religious faith. Before accepting any doctrine or precept, we should demand a plain "Thus saith the Lord" in its support." Great Controversy, p. 595.01

May God give you the wisdom to discern between Truth and Deception

Bob De La Torre
Webmaster
Adventist4Truth (a4t.org)

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Subject: ON WEDNESDAY CRUCIFIXION

July 1, 2005

My dear brother Bob:

With much love in my heart for you and with the prayer that the Lord will give me the right words to say I must pen this letter to you at this time. I have looked at your arguments for a Wednesday crucifixion and must admit that I cannot accept your reasoning, especially in the light of so many plain and clear statements to the contrary in the Spirit of Prophecy, as will be shown.

One thing I found was that the word "commandment" in "...and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment..." refers to a "precept," in other words the law of God, not to an ordinance, a feast or a ceremonial decree. Also the word the word for "preparation" in Mark 15:42 and Luke 23:54 in Greek is paraskue, which to this day in modern Greek is still
the name for Friday!

That being said let me share some definite statements from the Spirit of Prophecy, which I MUST accept over any other reasoning. Over time I have found that this course of action has always been the safest road to follow, especially in light of the fact that ever since my initial separation from the apostate structure I have seen winds of doctrine of all sorts presented, from the God does not destroy heresy, to the Feast days, the Yahweh, the Holy Ghost, etc, etc--always with a mass of Scripture and SOP allegedly supporting their view, and which becomes the all-consuming, essential, salvational issue. These things certainly lead one to study and search out the truth, and I have done the same with your presentation. Let me compare that with words from the servant of the Lord. We read:

1. "And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested." Gen. 2:1-3. The death of Christ was designed to be at the very time in which it took place. It was in God's plan that the work which Christ had engaged to do should be completed on a Friday, and that on the Sabbath He should rest in the tomb, even as the Father and Son had rested after completing Their creative work. The hour of Christ's apparent defeat was the hour of His victory. The great plan, devised before the foundations of the earth were laid, was successfully carried out.-Ms 25, 1898, pp. 3, 4. ("The Man of Sorrows," typed, February 24, 1898.)

2. "At last Jesus was at rest. The long day of shame and torture was ended. As the last rays of the setting sun ushered in the Sabbath, the Son of God lay in quietude in Joseph's tomb. His work completed, His hands folded in peace. He rested through the sacred hours of the Sabbath day. In the beginning the Father and the Son had rested upon the Sabbath after Their work of creation. When "the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them" (Gen. 2:1), the Creator and all heavenly beings rejoiced in contemplation of the glorious scene. "The morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy." Job 38:7. Now Jesus rested from the work of redemption; and though there was grief among those who loved Him on earth, yet there was joy in heaven." DA: 769

3. "They returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment." Luke 23:56. The Saviour was buried on Friday, the sixth day of the week. The women prepared spices and ointments with which to embalm their Lord, and laid them aside, until
the Sabbath was past. Not even the work of embalming the body of Jesus would they do upon the Sabbath day. "And when the Sabbath was past, . . . very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun." Mark ... ...the garden, they were surprised to see the heavens beautifully lighted up, and to feel the earth trembling beneath their feet. They hastened to the tomb and were still more astonished to find that the stone was rolled away, and that the Roman guard was not there." Story of Jesus: 157

4. "That was a never-to-be-forgotten Sabbath to the sorrowing disciples, and also to the priests, rulers, scribes, and people. At the setting of the sun on the evening of the preparation day the trumpets sounded, signifying that the Sabbath had begun. The Passover was observed as it had been for centuries, while He to whom it pointed had been slain by wicked hands, and lay in Joseph's tomb. On the Sabbath the courts of the temple were filled with worshipers. The high priest from Golgotha was there, splendidly robed in his sacerdotal garments. White-turbaned priests, full of activity, performed their duties. But some present were not at rest as the blood of bulls and goats was offered for sin. They were not conscious that type had met antitype, that an infinite sacrifice had been made for the sins of the world. They knew not that there was no further value in the performance of the ritual service. But never before had that service been witnessed with such conflicting feelings. The trumpets and musical instruments and the voices of the singers were as loud and clear as usual. But a sense of strangeness pervaded everything... They could rest little upon the Sabbath. Though they would not step over a Gentile's threshold for fear of defilement, yet they held a council concerning the body of Christ. Death and the grave must hold Him whom they had crucified. "The chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while He was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night, and steal Him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can." DA 777, 778

5. "The women who had stood by the cross of Christ waited and watched for the hours of the Sabbath to pass. On the first day of the week, very early, they made their way to the tomb, taking with them precious spices to anoint the Saviour's body. They did not think about His rising from the
dead. The sun of their hope had set, and night had settled down on their hearts. As they walked, they recounted Christ's works of mercy and His words of comfort. But they remembered not His words, "I will see you again." DA: 788

6. "In the beginning the Father and the Son had rested upon the Sabbath after Their work of creation. When "the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them" (Gen. 2:1)... the day on which Jesus lay at rest in Joseph's tomb, will still be a day of rest and rejoicing. Heaven and earth will unite in praise, as "from one Sabbath to another" (Isa. 66:23) the nations of the saved shall bow in joyful worship to God and the Lamb." MARANATHA: 371

7. "Christ rested in the tomb on the Sabbath day, and when holy beings of both Heaven and earth were astir on the morning of the first day of the week, he rose from the grave to renew his work of teaching his disciples. But this fact does not consecrate the first day of the week, and make it a Sabbath.. Jesus, prior to his death, established a memorial of the breaking of his body and the spilling of his blood for the sins of the world, in the ordinance of the Lord's supper, saying "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come." And the repentant believer, who takes the steps required in conversion, commemorates in his baptism the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. He goes down into the water in the likeness of Christ's death and burial, and he is raised out of the water in the likeness of his resurrection--not to take up the old life of sin, but to live a new life in Christ Jesus." 3SP 204

8. "They laid the body of the Saviour in Joseph's sepulcher, and set a watch that none should steal him away. Christ rested on the Sabbath day in the tomb. But on the morning of the third day the Roman watch behold a light stream from heaven, and the angel of God descend. The mighty angel
comes to the tomb of the Son of God, and rolling away the stone, bids Jesus come forth. The Roman guard see Him come forth to life, and hear him proclaim over the rent sepulcher of Joseph, "I am the resurrection, and the life." 9RH 01-14-09

My dear brother, we have started getting calls on your emphatic insistence on this matter and at this time may I offer the following inspired counsel, especially in view of the fact that this is causing unnecessary
discord which WILL eventually reflect not only on your work, but on all the ministries and material posted on your website--and as you are well aware, much of what is on your site is already controversial, but we know that it can be supported by the Scriptures and the Spirit of Prophecy.

"Brethren should not feel that it is a virtue to stand apart because they do not see all minor points in exactly the same light. If they agree on fundamental truths, they should not differ and dispute about matters of little real importance. To dwell on perplexing questions, that after all are of no vital consequence, tends to call the mind away from truths vital to the saving of the soul. Brethren should be very modest in urging these side-issues, which often they do not themselves understand, points that they do not know to be truth, and that are not essential to salvation. When there is difference of opinion on such points, the less prominence you give to them the better it will be for your own spirituality and for the peace and unity of the church." 3MR 28

Perhaps you may believe that this issue IS of vital consequence, IS essential, but as I stated before, you will meet strong opposition from most, if not all of the brethren if you insist of maintaining your
position which flies directly in the face of inspiration. So in closing, let me share this final inspired word of counsel: "In a special sense Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world have been set in the world as watchmen and light bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning for a perishing world. On them is shining wonderful light from the word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import--the proclamation of the first, second, and third angels' messages. There is no other work of so great importance. They are to allow nothing else to absorb their attention." 9T: 19 I will let you place the emphasis where you believe it should be placed.

Let us seek then for the peace and unity of the church. Your loving brother in Christ,

C.

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July 1, 2005

Dear brother C.

I appreciate your efforts to bring my attention to this matter. I do not presume to know more than others in any way, but I do know that in the last days new light will be made evident to shine upon truths that have been there all alone.

I hope you will excuse my scarcity of quotes to support what I believe as you have done, but I was surprised that you did not deal with one single issue that questions the validity of a Friday crucifixion. Because you quoted almost exclusively from the Spirit of Prophecy, I will just quote two statements that Sister White made in case you missed these in the articles: 4BIO 384.5 & 3BIO 338.4 (You can find them included near the bottom of this letter)

I think that among the most glaring omissions is not explaining how Matt. 12:39, 40 is to be taken, especially when we see that the same thought is reiterated in Luke 11:29-32, please compare with Jonah 1:17. Please note, Brother C., that Christ is speaking and He does not say "three days and nights", but "three days AND THREE nights". Tell me, please, if there is an equal emphasis on the nights as there is on the days? What is the obvious conclusion otherwise? That both Christ and His Holy Father are LIARS? Please forgive the capitals, but since I use Text Mode and not HTML, I cannot use Bold nor Italics.

You mentioned the Passover. Do you believe that the Passover occurred on a specific weekly day each year? I think that is the assumption that is being given. In other words, was the Passover determined by the day of the week or by the date on the calendar in accordance with the phases of the moon?

You repeatedly mentioned Christ resting in death on the Sabbath. I don't believe there is any controversy there except in how Sister White interjects Friday evening into this. Sufficient evidence is given in the articles to show that all Sabbaths whether on the weekly cycle or on a festival day, had a preparation day prior to it. The Gospels ALL show that the Mary(s) went to the tomb at DUSK, not at dawn, check with your Strong's.

In light of what Sister White wrote to Marian Davis, as mentioned above, it makes me very nervous when I hear a brother say that he basically upholds her writings above what Scripture says. I know that for many, putting any doubt on Sister White's wrings would be detrimental to their spiritual faith, but let's be honest with ourselves brother, can we take her for her word when she says that she was not given any light on the sequence of events during Passion Week? That she had to research this for herself and that she wrote according to the prevailing wisdom of her day? Is this too implausible to accept?

Are we also to believe that the Little horn power (Satan) would not try to deceive even the very elect to believe that Christ arose on Sunday morning? Is he only limited to changing the day of worship in the accepted traditionally held way? What is the number one reason that people give for keeping SUNDAY?? Is this a basic pillar of truth that is being dismantled before your very eyes and you do not recognize it?

Brother C., in a very loving way, I wish to point out to you some counsel from Sister White in how to use her writings. You will read those words in 13MR 192-207. You didn't really follow her instructions in your letter to me today. I would like Bible answers to explain the questions above, because that is the way she said it should be done and because that is how we learn to defend our faith to those that do not know the truth... "A Thus saith the Lord" ... as you are often quoted repeating.

Did you read this far in the articles to catch this point before you sat down to write to me? I do not find that Ellen White makes any hint regarding which day of the week the supper took place in the upper room. She makes one statement that seems quite odd at first impression when she writes:

"He Himself was the true paschal lamb, and on the day the Passover was eaten he was to be sacrificed."

This needs an explanation. This statement taken at its face is contrary to the instructions in Exodus 12. The paschal lamb is killed on the day before the Passover is eaten. The lamb is NOT eaten on the same day it is killed. The lamb is killed on the 14th of the month and eaten that night. In scripture the day changes at sunset, so "that night" would be the next day and the 15th of the month.

But I would like to presume that there is some sense in which her statement is true. The only way I can think of to interpret her statement as true is that the Passover meal He was eating with His disciples was being eaten on the day He was to be sacrificed. This is literally what she wrote and it is true only in this limited sense. It would have been easier to understand if she had written, "...and on the day He ate the Passover with His disciples He was to be sacrificed."

What day was this supper on? It was on the evening that began the fourth day of the week - the same day He was crucified. Here's how to figure it out. Jesus was resurrected at the close of Sabbath just after sunset. Counting backwards three days and three nights brings us to sunset that ends the fourth day of the week. The fifth day of the week (roughly what we call Thursday) was the Passover - the 15th of the month. The day before (roughly what we call Wednesday) was the preparation day - the 14th of the month. The Lord's Supper was eaten after sunset on what we would call Tuesday night, which would be the 14th of the month. Midnight begins what we call Wednesday which is the day on which He was arrested, tried, and crucified. This is why it is referred to as the Wednesday crucifixion.

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I was looking earlier today for the info on Marian Davis and found it. I was looking for it today because on Sabbath, the SS teacher stated several times that he was following Mrs. White's chronology in the description of the events of Passion Week. I only wish that were true. By her own
admission, she had a poor sense of the sequence of the events of the life of Christ and did not receive any special revelation regarding it. When she was writing the manuscript for the "Life of Christ" which became the Desire of Ages, she requested that her literary assistant, Marian Davis, find some histories of the Bible that would help her understand the order of events. Ten years later, she was still struggling with the sequence of events. Following are two quotes in support of this:

"Tell her I have just one minute ago read the letters in which she has specified the improvements to be made in articles for volume 1. I thank her. Tell her that she has a point about Zedekiah's having his eyes put out. That needs to be more carefully worded. Also the rock, when the water flowed- something in reference to this. I think I can make the articles [chapters] specified more full, and as I am famous for moralizing, this will be no cross. Tell her to write to me, as I prize her letters as if she were my own child. . . . Tell Mary [Marian] to find me some histories of the Bible that would give me the order of events. I have nothing and can find nothing in the library here. It is getting dark and I am resolved not to use my eyes or brain by candlelight."-Ibid. {3BIO 338.4}

"The Sequence of Events"As the materials were assembled and arranged into chapters, careful attention had to be given to the sequence of the events in the Saviour's life. To what extent and in what detail visions provided the sequence in ministry and miracles in Christ's life and work is not [385] known. It is known that a decade earlier she made a significant request: "Tell Mary to find me some histories of the Bible that would give me the order of events."-Letter 38, 1885. The Gospel writers in their accounts did not help much in the point of sequence. In the absence of direct instruction from Ellen White, or clues in the materials themselves, Miss Davis consulted carefully prepared harmonies of the Gospels, and as the work progressed made considerable use of S. J. Andrews' Life of Our Lord Upon the Earth, which as noted on the title page took into account "Historical, Chronological, and Geographical Relations."" {4BIO 384.5}

Notice that Mrs. White said she has nothing and can find nothing on the sequence of events of the life of Christ. From this I hope one can see that the chronology of Mrs. White is not a revelation given her in vision, but an understanding developed from careful study of scripture itself and trusted writers. She gives us no indication that she received any special revelation on the issues of the sequence of the events of Passion Week when she started her project on the Life of Christ, nor ten years later when she was finishing it. Neither did she have any Greek-English lexicons or Interlinear Bibles to turn to for help. We probably mislead others hen we tell them that we rely on her understanding of these events, which implies that she did have some special revelation regarding these events when she did not.

Those who present the traditional teaching of the events of Passion Week while claiming to follow Mrs. White's chronology, fail to point out that she places the context of John 12:1 on Friday and the feast at Simon's house on Friday evening. Here are her words from Chapter 62 of Desire of Ages, entitled "The Feast at Simon's House," page 557, par. 3:

"The Saviour had reached Bethany only six days before the Passover, and according to His custom had sought rest at the home of Lazarus. The crowds of travelers who passed on to the city spread the tidings that He was on His way to Jerusalem, and that He would rest over the Sabbath at Bethany. Among the people there was great enthusiasm. Many flocked to Bethany,
some out of sympathy with Jesus, and others from curiosity to see one who had been raised from the dead."

Obviously, if Jesus was going to spend Sabbath in Bethany, He had to get there before Sabbath. As I illustrated on my chart for Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the New Testament, Jesus' arrival in Bethany on Friday afternoon is a perfect match for John 12:1 which states that He arrived there six days before Passover. Passover is the 15th of the month every year and six days before the 15th would be the 9th. That evening, on what we call Friday evening and now the seventh day of the week and 10th day of the month, is when the feast at Simon's house was held. This is a typical Jewish Erev Shabbat meal which begins the Sabbath celebration with the woman of the house lighting the candles at the dinner table moments before sunset and the recitation of traditional prayers while standing around the dinner table. The next day, still the seventh day of the week and 10th day of the month, is when the triumphal entry took place. According to Exodus 12, the Passover lamb was required to be selected on the 10th of the month and Jesus was selected right on time. He was anointed by Mary at Simon's house and Jesus recognized that she had done this for His burial. The crowds recognized Jesus as their Saviour at the triumphal entry. Jesus was selected both privately and publicly, just as kings Saul and David had been anointed privately and publicly. We can
easily calculate that, according to Mrs. White, the triumphal entry was on Sabbath, not Sunday. It appears that she came to understand the time of Jesus' arrival in Bethany on Friday by her own careful study and that of her assistant Marian. We should do the same.

I believe it is an injustice to both Mrs. White and our readers/listeners to present the events of Passion Week according to the traditional view while claiming to rely on Mrs. White. However, anyone who relies on the traditional view does this is in good company as the entire world has followed the traditional pattern, including the SS quarterly and the SDA BC. Unfortunately, the whole world is following the message of the Little Horn in teaching these changed times." (The above could be found in the Additional Notes article)

Brother C., if you can shed some light from Scripture that would answer even one question that has been posed above, then we can surely say we are making some headway towards a fuller understanding of God's Word. Sending me a veiled threat was not a way that Christ would support, even when backed up by the SOP, especially when based on the lack of understanding on your part and the those of most in Adventism today. I exhort you to prove all things as you exhorted the brother in Pennsylvania. You have only just begun to understand Daniel and Revelation in the way that God wishes us to know it. Do you assume to have a full grasp on ALL the scriptures that support a Wednesday Crucifixion when studied in an unbiased and careful manner?

In closing, I want to make sure that you understand that in no way do I wish to undermine the SOP and if I said something that would raise your eyebrows, that I did not intend to say that. What I do say is that in the area of this issue, we must rely solely on Scripture based on Sister White's own admissions. I am also aware of what a letter such as you have written and I have responded to can do to a friendship. I beg of you that before any further damage is done that you prayerfully study ALL the articles with your BIBLE in your hands.

Your brother in Christ

Bob

PS I will forward your letter and my response to Brother Gerald brown to see if he can shed better light on this subject. But, I fear that his response will be that you did not really read ALL the articles and immediately started thinking of what Sister White had written.

"When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest!"

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Hello Jerry,

I've spent a little while this afternoon answering a dear friend of mine's letter. I don't know if you can shed any more light, but I know you have a simple and loving way of stating things which I sometimes lack. If there is anything that I left out that would be helpful, please let me know.

Bob

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Bob,

You gave a most excellent answer. I don't know how much of the material I've written your friend has read, but it is important to examine all of it in determining the truth. I am to the point where I can say with confidence that the single most important reason for the traditional view of the triumphal entry on Palm Sunday, the crucifixion of Good Friday, and the resurrection on Easter Sunday morning is to create the appearance for the validity of Sunday sacredness. Nothing in scripture supports the sequence of events as presented by modern Christianity. Scripture is clear that the lamb is selected on the 10th of the month and sacrificed four days later on the 14th of the month. If Jesus was selected on Palm Sunday as the lamb of God slain from the foundation of the Earth, then His crucifixion must be four days later on (let's see, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, yes!) Thursday - the day before the Passover on Friday. But the traditional view doesn't follow scripture. Of course, if Jesus were crucified on Thursday, then he would have been in the tomb only two days and two nights. That doesn't match the traditional view or anything Jesus said about Himself. It should be obvious that this is all wrong.

A couple of weeks ago Ken Hart made the statement as part of a private discussion before we started our video program Word Pictures that Jesus arrived in Bethany on the Sabbath and that the six days of John 12:1 is no problem because Sabbath plus six days gets us back to the Sabbath again. Following is my letter in response to his statement.

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Hi Ken,

I've tried counting the six days before Passover of John 12:1 the way you suggested last night and I cannot get the two facts required by the traditional view to turn out right. The two facts are the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday and Passover on the following weekly Sabbath. You stated that Jesus arrived in Bethany on Sabbath. Based on that presumption and recognizing that the day of eating the Passover meal is always on the 15th of the month, here is the count:

9th Sabbath 6 days before Passover

10th Palm Sunday 5 days before Passover

11th Monday 4 days before Passover

12th Tuesday 3 days before Passover

13th Wednesday 2 days before Passover

14th Thursday 1 day before Passover

15th Friday = Passover.

Can you find that I made any mistakes? If not, then the conclusion is this: if Jesus arrived in Bethany on Sabbath six days before Passover, then Passover that year must have been on Friday. This, of course, does not match the traditional view. It seems that the traditional view requires us to read John 12:1 to mean that Jesus arrived in Bethany the day before six days before Passover.

If I counted correctly, this obviously does not match what you were trying to say last night. Your reckoning (the reckoning of the traditional view) is one day short of supporting both the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday and Passover on the weekly Sabbath.

It doesn't seem to work any better if I set Passover to coincide with the weekly Sabbath and count backwards. Here is what I get in that case.

9th Palm Sunday 6 days before Passover

10th Monday 5 days before Passover

11th Tuesday 4 days before Passover

12th Wednesday 3 days before Passover

13th Thursday 2 days before Passover

14th Friday 1 day before Passover

15th Sabbath = Passover

In this arrangement Jesus arrives in Bethany on the first day of the week on what we generally call Sunday. But this arrangement has a different fatal flaw which we need to examine. It has to do with the sequence of days established for the spring festival through Moses. How much of the Passover tradition given by God to Moses is typological? Specifically, why did God tell Moses to have the people select the Passover lamb on the 10th day of the month? Can you find any reason in the Old Testament for the 10th to have significance other than the fact that this was God's instruction to do
it this way? If so, please share it with me as I have not found any significance for this requirement in the Old Testament. Why weren't they told to select the lamb on the 9th, or 8th, or 1st, or 11th, or 12th, etc.? Is there any reason in the Old Testament for the 10th as the selection day?

I believe the sequence of days for Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread -- the selection of the lamb on the 10th, preparation of the lamb on the 14th, eating the Passover lamb on the 15th, the day of first fruits on the morrow after the Sabbath -- are all typological, and the anti-type must be seen in the New Testament fulfillment of this festival. Thus, Jesus must be selected as the typological lamb slain from the foundation of the world on the 10th day of the month. If Passover coincides with the weekly Sabbath, then the 10th is the 2nd day of the week, on what we generally call Monday, and that is the day Jesus had to be selected in this scenario. Is there any event in the life of Jesus during these days leading up to the crucifixion that qualifies as the selection more than the Triumphal Entry?
Certainly the anointing of Jesus by Mary at Simon's private dinner party the night before is a type of private selection. Jesus told those who criticized her to leave her alone because what she had done was for His burial. Jesus tied her act of anointing to his burial -- exactly the right kind of typological selection. But if Mary's anointing of Jesus was a type of private selection, then the Triumphal Entry was a type of public selection of Jesus as the Messiah. And both of these events happen on the same biblical day. This day must be the 10th of the month in order for the type to meet anti-type. But in this arrangement, the Triumphal Entry cannot be on Sunday because that is the 9th day of the month.

This is a serious problem because, it this is true, then God incorrectly predicted to Moses and the people of Israel that the Messiah, as the lamb slain from the foundation of the world, would be selected on the 10th day of the month, when it actually happened, according to this rendering of the
traditional view, on the 9th day of the month. From this we can conclude with confidence that God cannot accurately predict the future. Isn't accurate prediction of the future one of the things God alone is supposed to be able to do? The traditional view supports the argument that God cannot accurately predict the future. This is a much more serious problem than the problems which result from the first scenario.

It seems to me that no matter which end of the week I start with, the traditional view is one day hort of having enough days to actually support the understanding that the Triumphal Entry was on Palm Sunday and Passover was on the weekly Sabbath. Neither of these arrangements matches scripture.
Help me understand my mistakes.

Cordially,

Jerry

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When we recognize that Jesus arrived in Bethany on Friday six days before Passover as John 12:1 states, and that the dinner party at Simon's was that evening as an erev Shabbat dinner to begin the Sabbath with family and friends, Jesus' arrived in Bethany on the 9th and was selected as the lamb
of God on the 10th which was the weekly Sabbath. If we understand that all of the temple services had a typological aspect and that those typologies were met with the anti-type in the reality of the events of the life of Jesus, then we also have to recognize that there were four days from his selection to His crucifixion. The four days are from Sabbath to Wednesday. The traditional view has changed this to be five days from Sunday to Friday. Most of Christianity rejects the very words of Jesus as He gave us the sign of the Messiah to be the three days and three nights that He would be in the heart of the Earth. The four days from Sabbath to Wednesday plus the three days and three nights that Jesus said He would be in the heart of the Earth brings us back to Sabbath as the last day Jesus was in the tomb. The women arrived at the tomb just after sunset on the first of the week to see that the stone was rolled away and the tomb was empty. But the traditional view changes this to be just one and one-half days in order to accommodate the resurrection on Sunday morning.

The traditional view does not care that Jesus is made to be a liar, that God's nature is diminished to be that of a mistaken prognosticator, and that the sequence of events must be altered to promote Sunday sacredness. Scripture must be splintered by the Little Horn. The clues in scripture are not important so long as we have our traditions to rely on. Those who rely on the traditions of men in preference to the holy scriptures of God will be captive to their theories and will reject the God of heaven.

Your friend, like so many in the Seventh-day Adventist church, place Ellen White on a very high pedestal. They are in danger of using her words and writings to supercede scripture. Are the words and writings of Ellen White always to be trusted? She claimed that she was a lesser light that was given to bring attention to the greater light. When we weigh these two sources, which are God's people to place more trust in? Notice this statement:

"Relationship of E. G. White Writings to Bible--The Lesser Light.-Little heed is given to the Bible, and the Lord has given a lesser light to lead men and women to the greater light.--The Review and Herald, Jan. 20, 1903. (Quoted in Colporteur Ministry, p. 125.) {3SM 30.4} This statement has been
printed in several places. Notice in particular that she states that "Little heed is given to the Bible..." That is exactly what your friend did.

Now let me broach a much more serious topic. What do we do with the words of God's prophet when the prophet says and writes things that he or she has not been authorized by the Lord to say or write? Jeremiah lamented that there were many prophets of the Lord in his day that were saying things that
the Lord had not authorized them to say and they were misleading the people of God. Lamentations 2:14. Make sure you understand that these are prophets of the Lord and not prophets of Baal that Jeremiah is talking about. Read also 1 Kings 13 about the prophet of the Lord who lied. Read also Jeremiah 6:13; 14:14 & 23:11. Has Ellen White ever written anything that might fall into this category? The following statement is one that even she came to recognize was not inspired by the Lord nor the angel of the Lord. Yet it appears in her published works. There are two other statements that are close to this, but this is the one that is the most offensive.

"Every species of animal which God had created were preserved in the ark. The confused species which God did not create, which were the result of amalgamation, were destroyed by the flood. Since the flood there has been amalgamation of man and beast, as may be seen in the almost endless varieties of species of animals, and in certain races of men." {3SG 75.2}

Here she identifies that the amalgamation of man and beast took place after the flood and that it resulted, in part, in certain races of men. This is very close to the degrading notion promoted by many Southerners in her day and for many years after that the Negro race was not fully human as it came into being by just this process. Her son identifies in 3SM 452.3-5 that it was Ellen White herself who decided that these statements should not be published in her later books. Curiously, he explains that "she had many times direct instruction from the angel of the Lord regarding what should be omitted and what should be added in new editions." This statement is clearly intended to mislead people into believing that Ellen White's published statements are entirely the result of divine counsel. This is a totally irresponsible sentiment regardless of how much we might want to esteem Ellen White as the prophet of the Lord. If the angel of the Lord informed Ellen White regarding what should be omitted or added, why did she write these statements in the first place? Obviously, these statements were never inspired by the Lord as they are contrary to God's design of nature. She knew nothing regarding the process of meiosis and the role of DNA in the reproduction of offspring, the discovery of DNA having been made by James Watson and Francis Crick in February 1953, which was more than 37 years after her death in 1915. The discovery of DNA verifies that there can be no
amalgamation between man and beast . There can be no viable offspring even though there might be an attempt between man and beast to mate. The various human races are strictly the result of variation built into the DNA molecular code and are the result of human reproduction only. It is completely appropriate that these statements not be published any more since they are so totally contrary to God's design for reproduction.

Yet, they serve as a reminder that we must always be vigilant in our reading and what we accept from the prophets of the Lord. Scripture must always take precedence over the testimony of anyone who claims to represent God. Neither must we allow anyone to make claims on behalf of a messenger that
are contrary to scripture. God's people are safe in rejecting the testimony of anyone, even when that person claims to be a messenger of the Lord, when the testimony is contrary to scripture. Scripture is our safe haven. Unfortunately, your friend is in danger of taking sides with the Little Horn.

Does you friend think that Ellen White made a mistake when she decided to eliminate these statements from her later publications? Perhaps he believes, as I'm afraid far too many do, that once the Holy Spirit blesses a person with inspiration, that everything a person says or writes is from that moment forward to be taken as the message from the Lord. In light of the problems Jeremiah encountered with many of the other prophets of the Lord in his day, that is certainly NOT how inspiration works.

It is most unfortunate that Ellen White did not go to the Lord in prayer over the sequence of events of Passion Week when she realized she did not understand them. On the other hand, or if she did go to the Lord in prayer, why wasn't she given a special revelation regarding them? But then, why would God give her a special revelation when the facts are already recorded in scripture? All one has to do is study diligently. Instead, she and her assistant turned to the writings of a Sunday keeping preacher for assistance. Based on the presumptions and the twisted message of the Little Horn, she makes her statements about the crucifixion on the sixth day of the week and the resurrection on Sunday morning. Scripture does not support either.

When one takes the time to study the details of the stories that make up Passion Week, scripture is clear that the traditional view is a twisted misrepresentation of what actually took place. The quotes of Ellen White provided by your friend regarding the time of the crucifixion, the time of resting in the tomb, and the resurrection must be understood in this light. Will there be strong resistence to this teaching and lots of rejection? Of course. But I remember the words of Jesus recorded in Matthew 19:29-30:

"Also everyone who has left houses or brother or sisters of father or mother (KJV includes wife here) or children of fields on account of My name, will receive a hundred times over and will inherit eternal life. But many now first will be last, and the last will be first."

Mark 10:29-30 has it:

"Jesus said, "I assure you, there is no one who has left home or brothers or sister or mother or father (KJV included wife here) or children or fields on account of Me and the gospel, but will receive a hundred times over now in this life homes and brother and mothers and children and fields, along with persecutions, and in the future age eternal life. But many that are first will be last, and the last first." In this world we might have to give up all of these in maintaining our faithfulness to the Lord.

Regarding your friend's letter: When he states that he "cannot accept your reasoning, especially in the light of so many plain and clear statements to the contrary in the Spirit of Prophecy," he is really saying that he rejects the Bible and the testimony of Jesus in reaching his understanding of these events. Everything I've written is based on the words of scripture and simple 1st and 2nd grade arithmetic. Ellen White is not authorized to cancel the words and message of scripture.

Regarding your friend's reference to "paraskue" being Friday, if paraskue has an exclusive application to Friday because it is the present day Greek word for Friday, then what is the Greek word for the preparation day before a festival or an annual Sabbath?

Regarding the "commandment", read Exodus 34 to see that the Feast of Unleavened Bread is part of the Sabbath commandment. The English word that best captures the meaning of "Sabbath" in Hebrew is the word "intermission". The Sabbath, whether it be the weekly Sabbath or an annual Sabbath is to be an intermission in the routine of our busy days. Scripture knows nothing of a ceremonial festival or ceremonial Sabbath.

My hope is that your friend will decide to study the evidence in scripture regarding all these things and will come to recognize where the truth actually is.

Cordially,

Jerry

Additional Notes

Bob,

Here is an analogy that I think fits the way many Adventists rely on Ellen White.

People come to a crossroads with several roads intersecting. They are confused by the intersection because all the roads look inviting, yet most know that only one road leads to the Kingdom of God. Ellen White is standing by the intersection telling people which road to take. They ask her how she knows that the road she recommends is the correct road. She sounds trustworthy. They begin down the road she has pointed them to, but as they travel down that road, her voice becomes faint. They stop to listen for her words. Many decide to back track to the intersection so they can drink in her words and be refreshed. Her descriptions of God sound so wonderful that they become transfixed by her. They come to rely on her rather than scripture. Even God can be superceded by the comforting
familiarity of Ellen White. Her writings are given to lead men and women to the greater light of scripture. Her writings are not given to cancel the words and message of scripture. To use her writings for the purpose of diminishing the words or message of scripture is an inappropriate use of the Spirit of Prophecy. This is where many Adventists are in comparison with where they should be regarding Bible study. In the case of my study of the events of Passion Week, people are so accustomed to hearing the traditional view that they get upset when confronted with the facts of the Bible because they haven't studied scripture enough to see how the details reveal that the traditional view is totally wrong. All I'm doing is bringing the details of the story to their attention.

Shabbat Shalom,

Jerry

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Bob,

The quotes from 8 Greek-English Lexicons are found in my chapter entitled "The Day of His Death." Feel free to forward this to your friend. I would encourage him to read the entire chapter, but for a quick view of the issue of what paraskue means, that is found on page 6 of this chapter. It is important to remember that modern day Greek is not the language of scripture. It may be interesting that a modern word has a particular meaning today, but that is not evidence that the modern meaning is identical with or even related to the Koina Greek of the Second Temple Period.

I deal with the issue of the Greek prepositions in the chapter entitled "The Issue of Three Days in the Tomb."

There is no problem with the prepositions in the Greek, it's the prepositions in the English that get us running down the wrong road. Not once do any of the Bible writers use words that require us to understand that the resurrection was ON the third day. In every case, Greek words are used that mean AFTER the third day. It's the English that gets us in trouble.

Your friend has correctly counted the days involved in the Cornelius story. But the Cornelius story does not involve complete days. The time for beginning the counting is not at sunset as in the case of how long Jesus said He would be in the tomb, but is from the 9th hour (3 PM) when the angel appeared to Cornelius. Most of the first day is already spent and is not part of the story. The servants are sent to Joppa, arrive the following day, visit with Simon the Tanner and Simon Peter the rest of that day, begin the trip back on the third day, and arrive in Caesarea on the fourth day at about the 9th hour. There is no reference to this being four complete days. This is actually three complete days. The Good News Bible actually translates Acts 10:30 "Cornelius said, 'It was about this time three days ago that I was praying in my house at three o'clock in the afternoon.'" This is the correct time element, but the Greek actually says "from fourth day until this hour I was the ninth praying in the house of me..." In other words, the Greek acknowledges that these events span a total of four days.

However, that is not the same as saying that four total days are involved. Four total days would be 96 hours and the story would have to begin and end at sunset, whereas the time involved in the Cornelius story is 72 hours and begins and ends at the 9th hour.

Jerry

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Bob,

In my last post to you I quoted from the Good News Bible. Add these quotes from Edgar J. Goodspeed, James Moffatt, and William F. Beck after that and before the literal rendering of the Greek words in English.

Edgar J. Goodspeed renders it, "Cornelius answered, "Three days ago, just at this time of day, I was praying in my house about three o'clock, when a man in dazzling clothing stood before me and said..."" James Moffatt has it read this way: "Three days ago," said Cornelius, "at this very hour I was praying in my house at three o'clock in the afternoon, when a man stood before me in shining dress, saying..."" William F. Beck translates it "Three days ago," Cornelius answered, "I was at home praying till this hour, at three in the afternoon, when a man in shining clothes stood in front of me.""

Thanks.

Jerry